Aid groups sound alarm in Libya as hopes fade for flood survivors
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Aid organizations are concerned about the growing risk of disease in Libya, compounding the humanitarian crisis, as hopes of finding more survivors diminish in the aftermath of flash floods in Derna.
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Overturned cars lay among other debris caused by flash floods in Derna, eastern Libya, on 11 September 2023. (AFP)
Aid organizations have sounded the alarm over the increasing risk of disease spreading, which could further exacerbate the humanitarian crisis in Libya. Hopes of finding more survivors dwindled as days passed since the deadly flooding.
Flash floods on Sunday submerged the port city of Derna, washing away thousands of people and homes into the sea due to two upstream dams bursting under the pressure of torrential rains caused by a hurricane-strength storm.
As of Friday, there have been a minimum of 11,300 confirmed fatalities, accompanied by reports of 10,100 individuals who remain unaccounted for in the aftermath of the catastrophic floods.
In Al-Bayda, located 100 kilometers (60 miles) west of Derna, residents worked tirelessly to clear roads and homes of the extensive mud left behind by the deluge.
Aid organizations like Islamic Relief and Doctors Without Borders (MSF) have expressed concerns about the imminent threat of disease outbreaks and the challenges in delivering aid to the most vulnerable.
Libya is FLOODING. No one is talking about it. The top 1% globally are spewing more carbon than the entirety of the poorest 50%. And when disaster strikes the most vulnerable how do the rich respond? With silence. pic.twitter.com/hDCSC0GPEm
— Climate Defiance (@ClimateDefiance) September 10, 2023
Islamic Relief warned of a "second humanitarian crisis" following the flood, highlighting the "growing risk of water-borne diseases and shortages of food, shelter, and medicine."
The moment of flood hits Derna in Libya. #Flood #Libya #Derna pic.twitter.com/VUTIVZfVjW
— JournoTurk (@journoturk) September 11, 2023
Salah Aboulgasem, the organization's deputy director of partner development, emphasized the dire conditions faced by thousands of people, with a high risk of disease spread due to contaminated water systems. He noted that the city was filled with the stench of death, and almost everyone had lost someone they knew.
New video footage has emerged of the Libya floods, showing how streets turned into raging rivers in just seconds in Derna as nearby dams collapsed due to extreme rainfall.
— Colin McCarthy (@US_Stormwatch) September 15, 2023
Over 11,000 deaths have been confirmed, with another 10,000 still missing. pic.twitter.com/0SToym3QxJ
Meanwhile, MSF announced the deployment of teams to assess water and sanitation in the eastern region. Manoelle Carton, MSF's medical coordinator in Derna, expressed concerns about water-related diseases in such situations and described aid coordination efforts as chaotic. However, the Red Cross and the World Health Organization clarified that contrary to common belief, bodies of natural disaster victims seldom pose a health threat.
An AFP journalist in Derna described central neighborhoods on both sides of the river as resembling the aftermath of a steamroller, with uprooted trees and buildings, and vehicles strewn onto the port's breakwaters.
Ahmed al-Mesmari, the spokesperson for the eastern-based Libyan National Army, stated that the flood had affected "over 1.2 million people," emphasizing the extensive devastation and disruption of transportation in the affected regions.
